Updated 4/24 5:30 PM – The new snow stats just came out for Syracuse and it looks like….. Maybe I’ll just leave it at that to keep everyone in suspense OK, that would be mean! Worcester holds on for now and can keep camping out at the top of the Golden Snow Globe snow mountain. For now anyways

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Updated 4/24 1:00 PM – WTG Worcester on defending the top on the snow mountain yesterday. Worcester was able to hold off Syracuse, NY’s late season charge and still holds on to a 0.1 inch lead. Yup, just one tenth of an inch separates the two cities now in the Golden Snow Globe contest.

I’m hearing reports that Mother Nature sneezed over Syracuse a couple of times during the early morning hours so the next update will be really interesting. Will there be a new King of the Snow Mountain or can Worcester hold on to the top spot until the end of the snow season whenever that may be I have a feeling that Syracuse may have gotten just enough snow to either take the lead or perhaps maybe even a tie which I think would be pretty cool

No doubt this has been the most exciting season since the National snow contest started up several seasons back. Stay Tuned for an update when the National Weather Service posts the new snow stats for today

Updated 4/23 5:20 PM - Syracuse is reporting 0.5 inches of new snow for a new total of 119.6 as of 5:00 PM. Worcester holds on for now by only one-tenth of an inch… STAY TUNED and YES I am loving this

Looking at the radar over the Syracuse area it looks like Lake Ontario is still putting out as I type..
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We are just minutes away from finding out if Syracuse has melted away some of Worcester, MA’s lead. I know the anticipation is killing the folks in Worcester and Syracuse right now, myself included as we wait for the National Weather Service to update the new snow stats on their site. It has been snowing in Syracuse but was/is it enough to catch up to Worcester, MA or maybe even take the lead. Stay tuned because as soon as they come out I will be posting them right here.

Worcester had a slim lead over Syracuse, New York of just 6 tenths of an inch as of the end of yesterday, 4/22/2015. I’m seeing a couple of different new totals for Syracuse right now so as always I am going to be on the safe side and wait until the NWS posts the new totals on their website.

No new snow was being reported for Syracuse for yesterday so this next update which will be coming out in about half an hour will include any snow that fell after midnight and normally includes any snow that has fallen up until around 4:00 – 5:00 PM. I’m pretty sure that Worcester, Ma has no new snow to report for the fact that the good folks from Worcester that are in our FaceBook snow group seem to be a little anxious to see what Syracuse has to report this next update. Fell free to join the group, the conversation and the fun in our group at https://www.facebook.com/groups/861746940543642/

First as always I want to give a Big Thanks to David G. for your generous donation to the snow site. I appreciate you taking the time and it helps out a lot. Thanks a lot David

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Worcester, MA picked up another 2.4 inches of new snow yesterday to slip past Syracuse, NY and Lowell, MA to move into the #1 spot on the snow mountain. WTG Worcester

Worcester is now blowing away Syracuse by 0.1 of an inch of snow. OK, blowing away may be a bit strong but I am impressed at how close the 2014-2015 snow race is right now and every tenth of an inch matters right now. Here we are just a couple of days away from April and there are still plenty of cities still getting snow across the country.

Every snowflake counts right now because sooner or later (later ) the warm air has to move into the U.S. and stay for good. Right now, less than an inch of snow separates the Top 3 cities in the snow contest which are Worcester and Lowell, Massachusetts and Syracuse, New York.

In my opinion, there are at least 5 cities still in the running for the National Snow King title for snowiest Big cities and perhaps even 7 cities depending on how the next several days play out. Syracuse has been pretty quiet the last few days while a few of the other cities have been slowly adding to their totals. Buffalo has been closing the gap on Syracuse which could play out big time in the NY Golden Snowball snow contest.

Stay Tuned because this snow race is far from being over. I just hope I am not counting snowflakes til the end of June Have a Great Day All…

Syracuse, NY has taken over the top spot on the snow mountain and is now the snowiest Big city (pop – 100,000 or more)in the Country. The question now is seeing how the national snow contest is so close can Syracuse hold on to it? WTG Syracuse

Syracuse managed to just slip past Worcester, MA to take over the top spot but the snow contest is really close with at least a handful of cities still in the running for the bragging rights of snowiest big city in the country.

I’ll have to look back but I believe this is the first time that Syracuse has been able to climb all the way to the top of the snow mountain. Grand Rapids held on to the number 1 spot for a good part of the snow season. Erie, PA managed to reach the peak and held on to the lead for quite awhile until a snowball fight broke out between Worcester and Lowell, MA. Those two cities went back and forth at the top for a little while before Worcester managed to take control of the throne at the top of the mountain

Syracuse got a slow start to the 2014-2015 snow season and has been slowing inching their way to the top since around February. I have a feeling that we will still be seeing several more lead changes before one of the cities gets enough of a snow cushion to ride it out on the top of the mountain until the warm weather settles in for good. That should be sometime around June Stay Tuned for another update later in the day!

I want to give a Big Thanks to Karen S. for your kind donation to the snow site. The donations help out a lot and Thank You for taking the time, I truly appreciate it Karen

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Updated 3/2/15 - According to the National Weather Service’s last update Worcester, Massachusetts has once again taken the top of the snow mountain away from Lowell, MA. Both cities have been having their own little snowball fight and it looks like Worcester came out on top this round.

I think it’s time for a couple of the other cities to start playing at the top of the mountain. It will take less than 4 inches for Syracuse to take the top spot in the snowiest Big city snow contest and they are sitting in 3rd place right now.

Less than 10 inches separate the Top 6 cities right now and we all know that is just a storms throw away for any of the cities moving into the number 1 spot. Snow is in the forecast for a lot of the ities this week so you know it is going to be a interesting and better yet a fun week ahead. Have a great day and look for another update later in the day

3/1 - I can finally say to last seasons snow champs Welcome to The 100 Inch Club Erie, Pennsylvania Erie has been hanging at the 99 inch mark for a few days now but finally managed to pick up enough snow to join the club. It gets even better for Erie, you just slipped past Boston, MA to move into the number 5 slot on the snow mountain. WTG Erie and keep it snowing

We now have 6 Big cities (pop of 100,000 or more) in the 100 inches of snow club which are Lowell, Boston and Worcester, MA, Buffalo and Syracuse, NY and now Erie, PA. It’s a close snow race and any of those cities have a shot at winning the National snow contest this season. Let’s see if a few of the other cities can also make a comeback before the snowflakes stop falling. Of course that could be sometime in May the way the 2nd half of the season has been playing out

A lot of the cities in the snow contest added new snow to their totals today and it’s still snowing in a lot of them still. Tomorrow should be interesting and I have a feeling the Top 5 may change again. Stay tuned and welcome to the club Erie, it’s about time you decided to start playing again…

Updated 2/22 1:00 PM – First off I want to say Thank You to Eileen O. for your generous donation to the website and for taking the time to do so. I really appreciate it Eileen and it helps out a lot. Thanks Eileen

OK, As of this mornings update by the National Weather Service, Worcester managed to out snow Lowell and are currently the snowiest Big city (pop of 100,000)in the United States. The snow contest was tied for a couple of days with both Lowell, MA and Worcester, MA sharing the top of the snow mountain.

Lowell moved down just one spot and is currently in second place and not to far away from the leader. Less than 4 inches separate Lowell and Worcester but watch out, here comes the Favorite Syracuse rounding the last turn in the race. I think it will be really interesting when we get down to the home stretch looking at how close several of the cities are to each other right now

Syracuse has managed to slip past Erie, PA, Boston, MA and Buffalo, NY this weekend moving into the number 3 spot. Syracuse started out really slow this season but has finally gotten their snow machine working, Lake Ontario so I think they will be playing in the snow as long as the cold weather sticks around. Of course with only a couple of tenths of an inch of snow separating them from Buffalo, things could change by the time the afternoon update comes out. Stay Tuned
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Updated 2/21 11:00 AM – As always I want to give a sincere Thanks to Kevin B. and to Carolyn P. for your recent donations to the snow site. I enjoy keeping the site up as much as I hope everyone enjoys seeing the snow stats and the cities compete. A fun way to pass the winter by. Thank You Kevin and Carolyn

OK, I am still surprised that we still have a tie between Lowell and Worcester after two days now. I think that may change buy the end of the day with a smaller storm moving into several of the cities in the snow contest as I type.

Syracuse is taking advantage the most so far as the Massachusetts cities take a little break from the snow. Syracuse managed to move into the Top 5 snowiest cities again and they may not be done just yet. Buffalo, NY has also been able to melt away some of the snow lead that Both Worcester and Lowell had over them.

It’s going to be interesting to see if the two leaders can hold on to the top spot on the snow mountain by the time this recent storm passes by. I’m starting to think that we may have a new leader come the end of this weekend. I think the Biggest question is which city will it be?

The Golden Snow Globe contest is about as close as it can get for this time in the season with only 6 inches of snow separating the Top 5 cities which are Lowell, Worcester, Buffalo, Boston and Syracuse in that order. Erie is right in the think of things too and less than 10 inches away from the top. We all know how bad last seasons snow champions want it this season and I’m sure they will do their best to hold onto the title of snowiest Big city in the United States.

From what I have heard so far from the members in our Facebook group that it is snowing right now in Buffalo, Erie and Rochester. Don’t take too big of a break Mass, it may cost you having one of your cities in the Top 3 Stay tuned for a later day update when the NWS puts out the next update.

First things first As always! I want to say Thank You to Bonnie C. for your kind donation to the snow site and also for the kind words and for sharing the newsletter with me, I loved it. I truly appreciate you taking the time Bonnie and Thanks again

It looks like Worcester, MA was liking it at the top of the snow mountain because they are back on the top. This time they have company though and they are sharing it with Lowell, MA the city that took over the top spot a day or two ago. Play nice up there and enjoy it while you can because I think Syracuse, Erie, Buffalo and a few others have their eye set on the Snow Crown too

I will have to look back to see if there was a tie earlier this season (Don’t count on that ) but it’s always nice when two cities are sitting at the top of the snow mountain. Worcester is a city that has been at the top of the mountain already this season and held it for awhile. Lowell, a city that came out of nowhere this season has been charging up the mountain and now that they are there it may be tough to bump them off the top.

I think the folks in Lowell don’t mind sharing with another fellow city from Massachusetts According to the NWS and Shawn Kelley who runs the Mill City Weather page on Facebook, Lowell, MA is closing in on their all time snowiest season’s snow totals of 111.5 set way back in the 1947-1948 season. You can check Mill City Weather out at https://www.facebook.com/MILLCITYWEATHER

Boston just missed passing Buffalo for the number 3 slot on the snow mountain coming up shy of just 0.4 of an inch. Boston continues to add to their snow totals and added another 2.4 inches of fresh snow yesterday. Boston, Mass is only around 5 inches away from the TWO leaders now. How dare I was counting you out not too long ago Boston

Da’Cuse is in the house OK, being from Syracuse, NY I always try to keep my posts unbias buttttt. Here come Da’Cuse, Here Come DA’CUSE!!! Hey, every now and then I have to open up a little. Syracuse which is the snowiest Big city on average in the US just got into a snowball fight with Erie, PA and came out the Victors. Syracuse started out slow this season but has begun their late season charge up the mountain once again this season. Syracuse barely slipped past Erie, PA to move into the #5 slot in the Golden Snow Globe contest and are just a little over 8 inches from the TWO leaders, Lowell and Worcester. No doubt this snow race is close with more than normal still having a shot at winning this season. Stay tuned

Feel free to join our FB Group which is open to both snow lovers and haters. Our group has a mix of both in it and there is some good info, pictures and stories being exchanged. Also a good place to be the first to get some breaking news Click Here to Join the Golden Snow Globe Facebook Group, Have an Awesome Day Everyone

First as always I want to give a Big Thanks to Alicia M. for you donation to the snow site. I can’t tell you enough how much I appreciate you taking the time. Thanks Alicia
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Right from the start I want to give a Big Thanks to Kim Buttrick from the Boston Weather Forecast Office in Taunton, MA for taking the time and helping me to clear things up. Not to mention taking the time to educate me on several things weather related. Thanks Kim, I can sleep again and I appreciate it Kim is (CoOp) Co-operation Manager for the Boston Weather Forecast Office which handles the 3 cities from Massachusetts that are in the National snow contest and right now in the top 3 spots in the contest. Well of course by the time I ever get this typed that may change

OK, so I ended up doing something today that I said I wasn’t going to do and don’t normally do I have been seeing snow stat totals floating around for Lowell, MA and have for the last few days that didn’t match up with what we have posted. They also didn’t match up with what the National Weather Service is showing on their website. I see this all of the time and I am a pretty patient guy and normally just blow them off. I figured I would wait a day or two or three and see if maybe it was just a matter of the National Weather Service site being behind a bit. After all I’m sure they are pretty busy crunching numbers on their side after all of the storms they have been getting.

It finally got to the point where news organizations were putting out misinformation that Lowell was in first place and were the snowiest Big city in the US. Most of the news media and journalists that I know were holding off on doing a story about it. I also was seeing stuff like Lowell, MA ahead and confirmed going around but nothing about the source from the National Weather Service that confirmed it.

It was finally time to check it out and to see for myself if I could get something confirmed from the only source that can confirm it. That would be The NWS office that handles the statistics for Lowell so I made the call and happened to get Lucky. Like I mentioned above I was able to get in touch with the exact person that I needed to speak with which was Kim who was totally awesome at helping me straighten things out

Kim took the time to go through the snow stats that have been reported for Lowell were up to date as of 6:00 am this morning when the last measurements came in from the Cooperative Weather Observing Station. She also mentioned that they were getting calls there about Lowell being the snowiest big city in the US and was wondering why. I gave her a quick briefing of the probable why and Kim said she may put out a weather brief or statement or whatever she called it(I type slow ) to straighten things out about the rumors that have been going around.

Here is a statement or at least most of what I was able to write down fast enough from Kim who is the (CoOp) Co-operation Manager for the Boston Weather Forecast Office – As of 6:00 am this morning 2/18 100.8 inches of snow has been reported from an Official Weather Observing Station for Lowell, MA. Kim said that that is what Lowell has as of that time for the season.

I believe Kim also told me that the official measurements for Lowell come from the Water Treatment Plant there. Thanks once again Kim for taking the time to straighten things out and I hope your calls and emails stop too

Once last thing! What really stood out from our conversation is how much Kim appreciates all of the work and time put in by the snow spotters that send reports in. She mentioned their dedication and brought up all of you snow spotters several time and nothing but praise. So if you ever fells discouraged for whatever reason keep in mind you are appreciated

OK, it still comes down to the 3 cities which are Worcester, Lowell and Boston as of the earlier update are the Top 3 snowiest BIG cities (pop of 100,000 or more) in the country. WAY TO GO MASS!!!

Kim, feel free to contact me if I misquoted or have anything wrong here, Thanks!

First things first As always! I want to say Thanks You to Benjamin O. and Eileen P. for your kind donations to the site. It may sound like a repeat but I do truly appreciate you both for taking the time. Thanks Benjamin and Eileen

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OK, I figure it’s about time to just put out a little info about the snow contest seeing how new visitors come everyday to the site. These are a couple of early morning posts that I made in our Facebook group which by the way is open to all snow lovers and haters too. Over 200 members sharing pictures and stories and growing each day Click Here to Join The Facebook Group

This is just to give all a little info on the snow stats on the website. For 12 -13 years I’ve been doing it this way and it’s worked out good and there is NO doubt it my mind it’s the best way. All of the snow stats that I use on the snow sites I get from the National Weather Service. They get them from sources across the country, blah, blah, blah and then they post the snow statistics to their site at weather.gov.

It comes down to that I need to see something posted on the National Weather Service (NWS) site so that if a reporter, a snow plow person, or pretty much anyone gets in touch with me I have something to show them. Pretty much something to cover my butt if the snow stats are being questioned. Yes, this way I can blame it on the National Weather Service, joking.

In the case of Lowell, MA I have no reason to doubt Shawn, who is the CoOp for Lowell, Mass and does the weather measurements for them about their snow totals and other stuff. It really takes a dedicated person to do what Shawn and many others do around the clock to help all of us out. Anyways Shawn has been posting some totals that he has measured for Lowell which I have no problem with. It gives us a heads up on what’s going on there There is a Good chance that Lowell, MA according to Shawn is in 1st place right now,

BUT…. Like I have done for the last 12-13 years on the Golden Snowball site, until I see it being posted on the National Weather Service I have to go with the snow totals they are showing which at last check is 100.8. I see different numbers all day long floating around online for different cities. The National Weather Service is where we get our data from and that is what we will go by. When they report we report…

Also keep in mind that it is not that unusual for statistics which show in the Now Data section on the weather service site to be behind. This has been the case since I have been checking snow stats. Most do an update once a day though. So in other words until the NWS updates I have no choice but to stick with the snow totals I see them reporting… End of Story and They Lived Happily Ever After smile emoticon

Another post I made relating to adding cities to the contest and if you know of one that has a population of 100,000 or more and can make it into the Top 25 PLEASE feel free to share it with us

This was a reply to someone asking about a couple of other cities in Massachusetts but it applies to all of the cities.

As far as I know the other cities don’t have any official snow stats. If they do I can’t find the By official I mean from the National Weather Service and stats that they consider to be official.

As far as putting other cities in the snow contest I do add several cities each season. I also remove several cities if nothing is going on snow wise there. I do check the cities that were removed from time to time. Obviously every city with a Population of 100,000 isn’t going to be listed. I’m guessing it would be over 100 and probably way more than that. I do try my best to keep it so that the top 25 cities are the snowiest but even that is hard to do. This season and Lowell, MA is a good example.

Lowell was never on the radar in the past. Because of the way this season is going someone suggested them, I researched them and they were added as they should be. Keep in mind that an update on average depending if I blog about it, do any research and so on takes 2-3 hours. This season I have made it a point to get at least two updates in. I did cut some cities a couple of weeks ago that weren’t doing much and that saved me a little bit of time. Keep in mind this is a one man show and not the Weather Channel who I’m sure has a ton of people looking up all the stuff they talk about and trust me I’m not complaining

Stephen helps out also and normally finds some fun stuff to add to the snow sites. I know he already hard at work thinking of something for next season

A big part of the FUN snow contests is that people are also suggesting a city that may have showed up on the radar and that helps me out a lot. They also make some good suggestions about a change on the site and other things. It’s the interaction with all of you snow lovers and haters that makes it fun for me. OK, the donations help too with the the time spent on the sites. I just added up the hours I put into the snow sites, mainly this one the last 4 days and it’s over 60 hours. Normally it’s around 30-40 I would say. I enjoy it though.

If anyone has a city that may be missing, mainly that would be in the Top 25 at this time in the season PLEASE feel free to let me know using the contact page above..

A Big Thanks to Robert M. and Tim S. for your donations to the snow site today. I can’t say it enough how much they help me out and how much I appreciate you taking the time. Thanks Guys :

To Robert, tell your daughter I appreciate her sympathy on the situation with out Syracuse men’s basketball team Oh, and don’t count Syracuse out just yet in the snow contest

To Tim, my pleasure to help you out and I WILL do exactly what you said to do with the donation, cheers
——————————————–Updated 2/11/15 10:00 am - I just wanted to give a heads up that with the storms hitting the North East US the last couple of weeks most likely there will be more cities being added to the National Snow Contest. I have been getting some emails and comments letting me know about cities that were previously not in the contest.

Keep in mind that there are I’m sure hundreds of cities with a population of 100,000 or more that do get snow. Not all of them can be added nor should they be added. That said with the unusual pattern we are in there are some new cities that have been getting pounded by snow and will most likely make the Top 25 list.

The problem right now for me is going to be trying to figure out most likely by calling some of the National Weather Service’s stations for each city to see if the snow stats are official or not. Soooo in other words it’s going to take some time to get the info and put it all together I think until then we should keep everything as UNOFFICIAL for now OK, it’s not like it hasn’t always been like that I suppose

IF YOU have or know of a city with a population of 100,000 or more as of the 2010 census that has enough snow right now to make it into the Top 30 snowiest cities on our list please feel free to help us out. Keep in mind that as good as the National Weather Service is Not all of the cities report the statistics for their snowfall. Thanks and Stay Tuned..
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I just updated the snow stats and switched it back to the current snow totals and what they should be on this date in the season. What stands out big time is that Both Worcester, Mass and Boston are both 50 plus inches over where they should be this time in the season. Pretty impressive IMO and WTG.

Almost all of the cities in the Top 25 are ever their normal (If there is such a thing) snowfall on the date this season. Syracuse, NY also stands out being the only city in the Top 10 snowiest cities in the country to be under their averages and they are under by more than a foot of snow.

I added Manchester, New Hampshire to the contest today and with the way the storms are going there will be probably more to add. I had some suggestions to add a couple more cities but unfortunately I couldn’t come across any official snow stats on the National Weather Service website. Right now I am seeing a couple different totals for Manchester at the NOAA site and I will try and straighten out what is going on when I get a chance. That is why the question mark is there after their totals.

Erie, Erie, Erie, Marsha, Marsha, Marsha I know most of the talk here has been about Erie, Pa, last seasons King of the snow mountain and defending champs but they have had the lead for awhile now. Before Erie it was all about Grand Rapids, MI which held the lead for most of the first half of the 2014-2015 snow season. The good news is that Buffalo, NY and Worcester, MA are keeping the contest close and less than 7 inches separate the top 3 cities. Only a tenth of snow separates Buffalo and Worcester now for 2nd place.. The bad news is that the early snow season favorite Syracuse is almost 2 feet behind the current leader. The double bad news is that I pulled some cities like normal during the second half of the season.

I have been thinking about pulling some cities from the snow contest for a couple of weeks now. The first cities that came to mind were obviously Erie, Buffalo, Worcester and Grand Rapids

Nothing against the cities I pulled but I’ve been getting a couple of updates in each day for a good part of the season and it’s a little too time consuming. In other words it’s pulling me away from my other websites which I count on to eat, lol No I don’t need a Wambulance and I’m not whining, I love doing this but between the 2 snow contests, doing research, updating and so on, a normal day is between 6-8 hours and normally more when the big storms hit. Again, I LOVE it but reality sets in

By pulling some of the cities which I will check from time to time to see how they are doing I can save a little bit of time. OK, That is my plea for forgiveness and hopefully none of the cities were yours. If one of them are and you will lose sleep over it then let me know and I’ll put the city back in I did leave a couple in that most likely don’t have a chance for the fact that I know people from those cities visit the website on a daily basis. I also get emails every now and then from people serving overseas that check from time to time to see how their city is doing so those cities stay and hopefully I didn’t pull any of them.

I have done this for the past few years and again I do keep an eye on them to see if they should be added back in. Below are the cities that were pulled this time around and again, let me know if there is a problem

St Paul, Minnesota – They have their Twin In it Still
Washington DC – Done well previous seasons only 3.6 inches
Indianapolis, Indiana – Never liked them, I’M JOKING! Only 8.5 and Indiana well represented…
Boise, Idaho – Previously dropped & added back in a few weeks ago. Nothing since so dropped again..
Columbus, Ohio – Ohio is well represented already…
Amarillo, Texas – Cool that they received 17 inches but nothing since.
Pueblo, Colorado – The lowest snow totals of the Colorado cities in contest to date.
Salt Lake City, Utah – Normally a contender but only 6.8 inches on the season.